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Saturday, October 29, 2016

Kootenai River and National Wildlife Refuge, Boundary County, Idaho

The Beautiful Kootenai River

Kootenai River & National Wildlife Refuge - Mid Draft Boats & No Access in RefugeKootenai River comes north from Canada and winds its way into Montana. This river is an extremely popular fishing river, of course, and is also popular for all types of small boating. There are 4 main launches on the Idaho portion of this river, with one major sportsman access site (see pic's.). There are two popular launch sites. One is next to the Kootenai Wildlife Refuge (landing #2), which gives you access to some channels around the refuge; and the other is at the river junction of Moyie River and Kootenai River (landing #4). The 2 landings in-between these launches are well maintained. LANDINGS INFO: Landing #1 is next to a bridge. Amenities include a paved launch, accessible restroom (when open), large parking lot, and dock. Landing #2 has a paved launch, large parking lot, dock, non-accessible restroom, and channel access around the wildlife refute. Landing #3 has a paved launch, restroom (not really fully accessible), & dock. Landing #4 for is owned by Twin River Canyon Resort and is a pay site (its good to support privately owned resorts that do not get our tax dollars but have to rely on the economy to survive). This launch also gives you access to the accessible portion of Moyie River below the dam.

Kootenai Wildlife Refuge (no boating or hunting allowed).Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge is a water foul preserve to help migratory birds have a safe and un-disturbed location to migrate through. There are no access points other than view points along the auto tour road. It is a great place to visit during the bird migratory

All public docks currently on the Kootenai River are horribily taken care of and are totally inaccessible toperson using wheelchairs.

season. Contact the refuge by clicking on this link http://www.fws.gov/kootenai/Directions: To access Landing #1 from HWY 1 a little after or before the HWY 95 & HWY 1 junction... turn on road 45. and follow it until you near the bridge. The launch is on the south side of the bridge on a short gravel road. To access Landing #2 & The Kootenai Wildlife Refuge from HWY 95, follow the signs to the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge, the road is called Riverside Street and is the street that goes west just before the bridge that crosses over the Kootenai River. You will easily see the launch before entering the Refuge. To access Landing #3 from HWY 95 follow the signs to the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge. The road is called Riverside Street and is the street to that goes west just before the bridge that crosses over the Kootenai River. About half way to the Refuge you will see an artsy cable pipe bridge; the launch is right next to this bridge. You will also see restrooms near the main road and a bigger metal pole building. This is the place! To access Landing #4 from HWY 2, watch for the Moyie River bridge (a very high bridge over the river. There is a view point right after the bridge that is well at the top. Its view over the deep Moyie River canyon is spectacular!). After crossing the bridge, watch for the signs directing you to the Twin Rivers Canyon Resort. Stop at the resort office to pay for your access and directions to their launch. To access Kootenai River Sportsman's Access next to the city of Bonners Ferry from HWY 95 turn on Riverside St., which is the street that goes west just before the bridge that crosses over the Kootenai River. This is the same street that takes you to the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge. Once on this street you will see a gravel road that passes under the rail road bridge. This is the place! Maps: View Google Map below...

3. Kootenai River Boat Launch (Next to Kootenai Wildlife Refuge. In this picture to the left one can see a smaller channel, this channel allows one to paddle into Deep Creek... includes a beautiful marsh area with lots of wildlife.ACCESSIBILITY SCALE:1. Parking... Loose gravel and mud (mud in spring and winter), No accessible parking spaces; 2. Restroom… No Restroom; 3. Dock(s)… Inaccessible; 4. Direct Water Access… Accessible via cracked paved boat launch; O.T.H.E.R… Oddities/Barriers: N/A; Trails/Paths: No Trails; H2O/Water: Typically very clean water, No running water; Environmental Conditions… Strong/Fast currents during spring runoff and early summer; Small sandy beach area (wheelchairs will get stuck), Resources: Small Store and fuel avaialble in Bonners Ferry.See Google Map above...

5. Kootenai River Sportsman Access at Rail Road Bridge at city of Bonners Ferry. ACCESSIBILITY SCALE: No Accessibility... Access via climbing down the very steep bank to the waters edge. See Google Map above.